Jackson Free Press

The winds of change were blowing through most of Mississippi in 1967. At Jackson's mass-transit authority, JATRAN, things were no different.

It was that year that then-30-year-old Excell Butler applied to be a JATRAN bus operator. The company hired him as one of only a handful of African Americans to drive a JATRAN bus.

Butler, who had worked at Jackson Packing Co. shipping meat, had one motivation for going after the job:

"Money," he told the Jackson Free Press. "It was good. It was one of the best-paying jobs in Jackson at that time."

Butler grew up in Jackson and knew the city well. The first assignment he received, known as "extra board," involved driving routes all over Jackson as needed. Running that route provided him the flexibility to run a few errands during his shift.

Eventually, Butler's seniority allowed him to choose a steadier route. He chose to drive the No. 6, which went between downtown and out to J.R. Lynch Street and from downtown out to Virden Addition in west Jackson. In those days, the buses were always full; today fewer people ride, he said.

"Downtown was busy at the time," Butler recalls of his early days at JATRAN. "Things were booming (downtown) at the time. You didn't have all these shopping centers."

Today, Butler drives the No. 5 route, which he said goes to the Jackson Medical Mall and Hinds Community College before heading back downtown. Butler drives Monday through Friday (JATRAN does not provide evening or Sunday service), until about noon, which he said allows him to spend time with his wife of 58 years, Jewell.

The couple also has "three lovely" daughters, he added. Butler recently celebrated his 47th anniversary with the company and, although he would like to keep going up to his 50th anniversary, he said it's not entirely up to him.

"That's something me and the good Lord have to decide," Butler said.